October 2014

10/13/2014

Meinecke won election to the 44th District Court in 2012, after serving for more than 10 years in the Oakland County Prosecutor's Office in the special victims unit, focusing on domestic violence, elder abuse, child abuse and sexual assault.

In 2011, he won the Courage to Lead Award from Oakland County S.A.V.E. (Serving Adults who are Vulnerable and/or Elderly) for his efforts to prevent elder abuse, and in 2009 he awarded the Domestic Violence Prevention Award from Oakland County Coordinating Council Against Domestic Violence for his work to end domestic violence, prosecute abusers, empower victims and educate police officers and members of the community about the dynamics of abuse.

Meinecke earned his law degree at Wayne State University and worked as a law clerk to the Hon. Daniel Sawicki prior to his work in the prosecutors office.

10/10/2014

Michigan Court of Appeals Judge William Whitbeck will retire on Nov. 21 after serving three terms on the court of appeals, including six years as the court's chief judge.

“Bill Whitbeck’s service to Michigan in both the judicial and executive branches of government is a testament to his keen legal intellect, administrative skill and policy-making acumen,” said Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert P. Young, Jr. in a written statement. “Those qualities combined to help him to make the Court of Appeals worthy of national recognition as a model appellate court while he served as its Chief Judge.”

Whitbeck decided to retire because he thinks the time is right.

“I am 73 years old and I’m cognizant of the fact that the human machine wears down over time,” Whitbeck told Michigan Lawyers Weekly. “It’s sort of like athletics — you want to go out on the top of your game and it’s a good time for me to do that."

Whitbeck will work on his second novel in his retirement. his first novel, "To Account for Murder," is currently for sale on Amazon.

10/07/2014

Starting in January of 2015, students can continue their classes at any of the law school's any other campuses in Lansing, Auburn Hills, Grand Rapids or Tampa Bay, Fla. In August, the law school told students that should the campus close, it would provide early registration at other campuses; a $1,500 cash stipend to help cover costs of attending another campus; a $3,500 stipend for a bar review course for graduates; specialized advising for registration, financial aid, housing and other issues; a possible adjustment to available financial aid and additional consideration to students with special circumstances.

The plan is subject to approval by the American Bar Association and the Higher Learning Commission.

In Cheboygan Sportsman Club v. Cheboygan County Prosecuting Attorney, the club sought to find out if conducting target practice at their shooting range within 150 years of occupied residences without the homeowners' consent violated MCL 324.40111.

The case involves a man who purchased residential property within 150 yards of the shooting range, after the range had been operating for decades. The man found a stray bullet on his property that he asserted had been fired from the shooting range. The local prosecutor informed the sportsman club that, “any individual discharging a firearm within 150 yards of a residence should face criminal prosecution for violating MCL 324.40111.”

The shooting club sued the prosecutor's office, and the National Rifle Association submitted an amicus brief on behalf of the plaintiff, asserting that the sportsman club was immune to a civil suit under MCL 691.1541. The trial court agreed with the NRA's argument, and held that unless the prosecutor could show that the sportsman club did not comply with the MCL 691.1541, the prosecutor could not prosecute its members.

Find out how a three-judge panel of the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled on that opinion in Monday's e-Journal.

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